More World War Two Letters From Mark

Wartime papers of Mark Nider make for some very interesting reading.  As I sorted through his papers, the mundane facets of Army life generated some questions for me.  How many of us have wondered about the day-to-day military life?  Because I am not part of the military, a “military pass,” is particularly interesting to me.  That slip of paper that gives a soldier free reign to wander:  What did it look like?  Is there anything special about them?  How can you tell an authentic pass from a counterfeit pass? 

Mark’s papers contain a couple of examples of passes.  No two are alike.  A detail I found particularly interesting are the rules and reminders at the bottom of the page.  Behavior was carefully regulated with the threat of denial of future passes as the control.

While stationed in India, Mark used these passes to explore Bombay and Calcutta.  In a letter to his brother Bernard (Wad), he recognized Calcutta as the more impressive city.  In his letters to Wad and to his family home in Nebraska he set out to describe so many of the fascinating details of India.

 

In particular, a letter he wrote to Wad reveals some of the wonder of his experience in Calcutta: “The Red Cross has organized tours of the city,” he wrote.  “We saw the burning ghats, Jain Temple, black hole of Calcutta, ate at Phirpos, etc.  At the burning ghats they charge 9 rupees 6 annas (about $3.00 per head) for burning the dead and throw the ashes in the Hooghly River.  They dip the bodies in the Hooghly before the burning, too.  They have some beliefs about the “coffee colored” Hooghly as holy water.” 

The amazement of the Indian landscape did not always meet with approval.  “There was not as much to the “Black Hole of Calcutta” as I expected.  If you will remember there was quite a story about it in our history books.”

 The greatest wonderment was reserved for a Jain Temple in the city.  “The Jain Temple is a dream.  It is made entirely of marble, ivory, colored glass, gold, silver, diamonds, and other precious stones.  I saw a diamond the size of a quarter in a monkey god’s forehead—and there are many monkey gods in the Jain Temple.  There is a lamp that has been burning every since the Temple was built (75 yrs.).  They have an ivory umbrella over the flame and never in all this time has any soot formed on this umbrella.  They believe that if ever soot should form on the umbrella—it will mean that a curse has been placed on the people and something awful will happen”

Mark’s descriptions of life in Asia provide interesting reading.  Because of the war, his paper supply and the length of his letter were limited.   His letters often ended abruptly.  This particular two page letter to Wad ended simply.  After describing the Jain Temple, he wrote, “Your Brother, Mark.”  And his continued interest and desire to share the details were reserved for another day and another letter home.